Mrs. Grumpy was an elementary schoolteacher for more than 40 years before she retired. Our summer trips invariably involved modest stone and mineral collecting – some “found” samples, and others purchased at rock, mineral and gem shops. I happen to think a lot of kids’ lives were enriched by Mrs. G’s collecting habit.
I’m always conflicted upon reading articles like the one in the NY Times.
On the one hand I see no harm in taking a souvenir stone, which sort of reflects the human hunting-gathering instinct. That leads me to scoff at the regulations and regulators.
But on the other hand, I also see where some people simply abuse and go way beyond the souvenir gathering. That makes me applaud the regulations and those who enforce them. Abusers of privilege always foul things up for everybody else.
By the way, if you are interested in collecting (or knowing about) stones, I commend to you a little book called Stones – Their Collection, Identification and Uses, by R.V. Dietrich.
G.
